The Five Don’ts of Dating Profile Pics

Let’s face it, not all of us are incredibly handsome or have a six-pack, so if we’re not all the good-looking, does that intrinsically mean that we can’t look good in our profile photos without the help of Photoshop? Well, wrong, when browsing dating profiles, people are usually looking for honesty, and that means displaying who you really are from the first picture. It’s essential to pick the right profile photo because, let’s face it, even if you are a brilliant neurosurgeon with your own house and car, what people will first see is your face and (maybe) your body. We’re visual creatures, especially when it comes to the Internet, so learn to feed the beast with the right profile pic.

We’ve gathered several bad examples of dating profile pictures to show you just what you shouldn’t do.

1. Photoshopped muscles, thin waist or luxury items. Photoshopping your body to look better is quite possibly the worst thing you could do for your dating profile. You’re not going to be able to hide how you really look like in real life, so why attract someone to become interested in you this way? Sure, you might say you’re doing it in order to attract a person who will then fall in love with your personality… Snap out of it! This isn’t a romantic comedy. Lying to a possible romantic partner from the start is just a jackass move. Plus, you have to face it, you’re probably not that great with Photoshop.

2. Dark Glasses and ski masks. We get it, you’re outdoorsy, you like sports, you’re looking for someone who is as active as you are. That’s great, but you could say it in words instead of a profile picture where the only face traits that are visible are your nose and, at best, your ears. It’s important to let your prospective partners see your face, eyes and smile. You should look outgoing and fun, not like a bank robber.

3. Group pictures only. Group pictures can be great: they demonstrate you have friends, that you’re fun and, in some cases, will make you seem more attractive if you are the best-looking of the group. But group pictures don’t work as profile images on a dating site because no one will really know which one you are. If you’d still like to use a group photo on your dating profile, then a cute/funny solution for it would be to place cartoon faces on all your friends like in the image above. Yes, in this Friends scenario you are Ross. Deal with it.

4. A photo with your ex. Stop it, just stop it. It doesn’t matter if that’s your best pictures or you want to show that you’re committed to a relationship. It will only make people think you’re looking for a threesome or are still hung up on your ex. Your profile picture should have your face in it. Your face. No one else’s. Unless you really are looking for a threesome.

5. Creepy photos. This is the most difficult one of all because most of the times we’re blind about ourselves. You might have a creepy photo and not even know it. Asking your friends won’t help. Asking the internet won’t probably help either, but it’s worth a shot. Strangers are much more cruel, so posting your photo on a forum and asking people if they think it’s creepy will in all likelihood bring you great amounts of shame, but at least you will know the truth and that picture won’t be on your dating profile. Please don’t be a redneck, naked or traumatized – well, not in your pics at least.